{orvieto}

First grayscale! Note my first blogpost about Orvieto...

{paestum}

On Wednesday the 15 of February, we loaded in to our giant pink bus and made the 4+ hour drive to Paestum.... we were lucky to have the opportunity to walk around the ruins for a couple of hours.... very beautiful... the weather was perfect and it reminded me of a damp spring day in mn when the grass is starting to green and everything smells fresh and clean, and you notice because you have been deprived of the sunshine and warm breezes all winter!

 {beautiful, REALLY old floor mosaics throughout the homes and shops}

 {clearly what would be taking place in this grassy area many years ago (=}

{on the bus ride to Pompeii, the Tyrrhenian Sea in the distance... the black streaks are the trees in motion with a slow shutter speed to capture the sunset... I like the effect}

One wrong turn by our bus driver and we were fortunate enough to catch our first glimpse of the Tyrrhenian Sea which was graced with a beautiful blood-orange red sunset.

We weaved back and forth along the coast and saw the beautiful terraced cities through the valleys that was a sea of twinkling lights that seem to blend with the stars in the sky, much different than skyscrapers and sprawled cities at night.

{zuppa}

{soup}

Jena and I are making potato soup!

Also a quick shot of some sketches I did for studio about "windows to the street"

Ps. I miss my pup (and you!)

{acquerello}

A statue in our neighborhood.... first low light watercolor I have done....

{roma}

I will have to admit that I have been avoiding blogging about Rome.... sorry.

Our trip was moved from the 27th to the 28th due to a country-wide train strike
On January 28th we woke up brirght and early to take the bus to the train station where we took an InterCity train to the Termini in Rome. We then met with our history teacher, Marco. He led us on a tour of the forum, the area surrounding the colosseo, arc di constantino, the wedding cake and campidoglio through the Jewish ghetto where we saw the turtle fountain and the Area Sacra (which is now a sanctuary for stray cats, seriously).... we also went to the Pantheon with Marco.  After eating pizza a couple of blocks from the Pantheon, we spent our free afternoon and evening exploring much of Rome (the eastern side of the river) including piazza navona, villa medici, piazza del popolo and many other sights by foot as a group of 8 en
ding with a sunset on the Spanish Steps... We took the subway back to termini found a deal on some food and then spent the night at M&J Hostel Place....

On Sunday we went to the roman baths, the circo massimo, and we also went to an exhibit on  michelangelo, the trevi fountain, and visited St. Peter in chains.... exhausted, sore, and emotionally drained, we took a slower Regionale train back to Orvieto.

I hope you all have been keeping up with my pictures I have been uploading on facebook! It is a slow process to upload... I will try and get caught up by the time we leave for Florence on the 10th!

{neve}

Last night we celebrated yet another classmate's birthday for miss Ashley Simpson.... we had planned to go to Perugia since they have some nightlife, sights to see and of course... chocolate! Unfortunately the snow kind of botched those plans..... but we definitely made the best of it here in Orvieto! We dont have class on fridays and we are loving our 3 day weekends.... there are a couple of bars on the hill that are pretty fun....

Considering that we have only been here for a couple of weeks, I am noticing that it is becoming more real that we actually LIVE in Italy.... all of my friends now have their regular bar (cafes are referred to as bars here) and their regular drink andcan recommend to you "the best restaurant in town" as for myself, I have become quite the pizza snob. Sfizio's is the place to go.... you will have to check out pictures as soon as I get them uploaded!

Tonight we will be joining you in a late night viewing of the super bowl.... it has become a tradition that Bar Duomo will stay open late to let the americans watch their football... should be interesting!

Love and miss you all! (=

Ps I have been trying to figure out my watercolor "style" ..... let me know what you think!

{neve}

{snow}

Our day trip to Assisi was cancelled due to abnormal weather conditions... apparently it is unsafe to climb  icy cliffside roads in a tour bus during a blizzard.... so after a day of hangin out inside.... my roommates and I are going to explore Orvieto.... more specifically the Duomo and a couple of museums.....

For my ma....
Debuting a wonderful gray skirt my mother made for me!